The hot, Orlando sun blazed over Walt Disney World’s Dolphin resort during the annual National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) convention. Over 6,000 students gathered from Nov. 11-15 to learn from journalism experts,  and over 2,000 competed in write-off competitions sponsored by the Journalism Education Association (JEA).

On the first full day in Orlando, Bryant journalism students traveled to Disney’s Magic Kingdom. For many, it was their first trip to what has been called the “happiest place on Earth.”

“Disney wasn’t what I expected,” junior Julia Nall said. “I watched the video they sent when you sign up for Disney, but it was just the Dumbo flying around and looked small. [The park] looked so much cleaner than I expected and not nearly as corny. Space Mountain was probably the highlight of my trip. I freaking love space.”

After a day filled with rollercoasters and Paul Rudd sightings (the actor was at the park filming an ABC Christmas special), students buckled down and took classes from nationally recognized journalists and journalism educators. Though Nall enjoyed her time in the park, classes were a whole new adventure.

“I expected classes to just be bigger versions of ones I’ve taken at other conferences, and that’s pretty much what they were,” Nall said. “I didn’t realize how much bigger they would be, though,These huge rooms were filling up with people, and you were turned away if you didn’t get there ten minutes before class started. This one class I took was taught by a woman who was a journalist in Iraq when ISIS took over–we got there an hour early, and within 20 minutes of us getting there, this massive mob had already gathered. I have no idea how many people were turned away from that class, but I wouldn’t be surprised if about 100 students didn’t get in.”

Nall is an active member of Model Arab League and took the class in order to pursue her interest in both the Middle East and journalism.

“Taking that class was such a blessing. The class was the morning after the Paris attack, and the way the speaker addressed that was amazing,” Nall said. “I’m really passionate about the Middle East and foreign crisies, and hearing about the ISIS situation from a woman who lived through it gave completely invaluable perspective.”

Students selected classes fit to their individual strengths and weaknesses. For junior Sidney Shipe, utilizing these classes helped her produce better art.

“[The NSPA] convention taught me how to be confident in my work and different ways to approach a design,” Shipe said. “I made several friends who were also artists and got their input on my work. I’m so thankful I had that experience because it allowed for me to become a better, more confident artist regardless of what is thrown at me.”

Shipe competed in Editorial Cartooning. Since Orlando was her first national convention, she did not know what to expect.

“I went into the contest thinking I didn’t even deserve to be there with such talented artists,” Shipe said. “My self-esteem was super low and I couldn’t possibly see myself winning something at a national convention.”

After being assigned the topic “school suspension”, Shipe went to work.

“School suspension isn’t the easiest thing to depict in an editorial cartoon, so I was definitely struggling, but suddenly the idea came to me. I decided to draw a teenage boy lying on the school as if it was a beanbag to show that he was above the school as he threw darts with ribbons labeled with programs that were intended to help student behavior at a dartboard on his wall. I depicted all the darts hitting the wall rather than the board to show that the programs didn’t work. I then added a window showing a school bus passing his house on a Monday morning and a trash bin filled with crumbled up suspension notices to show his carelessness of being suspended,” Shipe said.

Shipe eagerly awaited the announcement of awards, but did not expect the results she received. Shipe was awarded an Honorable Mention for her piece.

“After turning in my work, I was constantly biting my nails waiting on some sort of news on how things went. On my way home from the airport, I check the official JEA contest results, and as soon as I saw my name and the words ‘Honorable Mention’, I was in complete and utter shock,” Shipe said. “I couldn’t speak for a few minutes then I let out an excited scream and hugged my mom tightly. I was overwhelmed with intense happiness to know that my ability and creativity had been recognized by such a large convention.”

Bryant won a total of 12 onsite contest awards. Senior Chris Lewis received a  Superior rating for his Yearbook Sports Photo Package and received an Honorable Mention for NSPA Sports Picture of the Year.

“This was my first NSPA conference, so to go out my senior year with two awards of the highest rating felt really good,” Lewis said. “It’s a huge honor to get an award that thousands of people submitted for. Only six people were recognized, so even an honorable mention was a big deal in Sports Picture of the Year. Then to get a Superior in Sports Photo Package was even better. I was proud of my individual work being rewarded, but also proud of the staff’s hard work when we were awarded fifth in Best of Show [for the 2015 Hornet yearbook, ‘Own It’].”